Differences In American Culture

One of the points that stood out the most to me was that even though not everyone is necessarily a racist person, everyone inherently holds prejudices. Although I’d like to believe that I am inclusive and not discriminatory, the reality is that I am still prejudiced and that I still discriminate others based on their appearance even though I don’t show it blatantly. Growing up in an Asian household, my parents taught me to be careful of certain

Having an open mind is another characteristic people turn to when contemplating what an ideal person is. It shows that one is open to new ideas, suggestions and can see the opposing side of an argument. Appreciation is given to those with this trait because it is easier to reach agreements on important matters by both sides of the argument compromising. Machiavelli, on the other hand, prefers to be in control and tells people this in The Prince. Once again, he has a pessimistic outlook on what the optimal person is.

The cultural definition of deviant behavior in the Amish community is way more extreme by modern Americans definition. Most Americans view deviant behavior as breaking the law, or behavior that does not conform to the norms of a particular society. They wouldn’t label watching television, driving a car, or wearing immodest clothes as divergent, since it is socially seen as normal. They might view the Amish as deviant because they refuse to participate in the normal practices of most Americans. These varying views of deviance highlights how essential one’s upbringing is in shaping the decisions they

Without a good way of speaking to people, a speech-bearer will not get the message across in the desired fashion. America likes to be fed information and likes to hear and feel the passion in others rather than creating less public and unified little passions in themselves. Citizens like to hear their leaders interpretations and feel a sense of grouping from that, therefore most people will not have read the way Obama’s eulogy was written and analyzed it, but watched him read it and felt the rigor in his voice and therefore found a better sense of understanding. Things tend to make more sense to people when conveyed by someone they look to for guidance rather than when broken down themselves. So when President Obama at the end of his speech begins to sing, “Amazing grace how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me; I once was lost, but now I’m found; was blind but now I see.” It is not the paper in front of him belting out those lyrics, nor is it the way he wrote them on the paper that somehow makes them come out of his mouth in song, but it is his connection to the people that makes this melodious decision.

Most people today value privacy, especially privacy from their neighbors. Some build fences, others plant trees, all in order to avoid the presence of the people who live next door. However, the avoidance of neighbors is one of the causes of the decline in civic engagement and trust in modern American society. This is seen in the stories “Mending Wall” and “The Interlopers,” by Robert Frost and Saki, respectively. In these stories, conflicts arise because of the physical borders that separate the characters, but these literal walls also symbolize the figurative walls that lie in between them as well.

Enforcing lifestyle clauses has been one of the most controversial issues in The US for a long time. Some people claim that American contract law is built on freedom of contract which means these lifestyle clauses must be enforceable as long as these clauses were voluntarily made by the couples and these clauses were consistent with the laws. However, others allege that compelling people to carry out what these prenuptial clauses state could lead these people to lose their freedoms especially when we know that some clauses may preclude them from having a normal life such as asking him or her to stay home all the time. I strongly believe that although American contract law gives people the freedom of contract, only the reasonable lifestyle clauses should be enforceable. The freedom of contract granted by the American contract law is the argument many people use to support the idea of making prenuptial agreements enforceable even if these prenuptial agreements contain bizarre lifestyle clauses.

He then talks about how despite this individual perspective, there is a greater sense of community in being a part of the Arab community which implies that no matter what a person might think, it is ultimately their goal to be subservient to the desires of the larger community. When Cultures Collide : Managing Successfully across Cultures by Richard D. Lewis talks about the values and traits of different cultures. Americans are forthright and direct about their intentions and needs. It talks about how these tendencies can cause conflict with people in different social structures where these tendencies are not valued as highly. Arab countries value conservatism and integrity where Westerners value rationality.

Another cultural difference Aurea found in America had to do with racism. She does not try and sugar coat the fact that Brazil definitely had its issues with racism. Yet still, the blatant racism and hostility toward immigrants that was so casually thrown around in America was a shock. Aurea herself never had much of an issue being a foreigner. However, she clearly saw the effects once she married her husband, a German immigrant name Michael.

No one enjoying the blur of cultures and languages can imagine the difficulties and horrors caused by the same diversity in cultures and languages elsewhere. I believe that every problem in all of history can be traced back to differences. Every culture is different from another, and many do not accept what is different. Being unable to communicate merely compounds this problem. Columbus believed the Native Americans to be simple because of their language,

Essentially humans, like most species want to be around others like them. They want to settle down, form relationships, make connections and have a sense of belonging without which they feel incomplete. In the words of Baumeister and Leary, “it seems fair to conclude that human beings are fundamentally and pervasively motivated by a need to belong, that is, by a strong desire to form and maintain enduring interpersonal attachments.” They want to form lasting bonds and feel close to others, this also means that they are hesitant to break them even if that means having to endure beatings and inhumane treatment. This thesis paper hopes to prove that, even when relationships turn out to be unhealthy and abusive, people still have a difficult